Bronx City Rockers

All tracks live at The Palladium, New York, on 21st September, 1979. This is an edit of the whole show (the only song missing is Jail Guitar Doors), and the track order has been changed significantly. The complete, correctly sequenced, show can be found on The Guns Of Brixton CD.

Track listing

The Guns Of Brixton

English Civil War

Clash City Rockers

Stay Free

Clampdown

Police & Thieves

Capital Radio

Safe European Home

I'm So Bored With The U.S.A.

Complete Control

London Calling

(White Man) In Hammersmith Palais

Koka Kola

I Fought The Law

Armagideon Time

Career Opportunities

What's My Name

White Riot

Tommy Gun

Wrong 'Em Boyo

Janie Jones

Garageland

Review

This CD contains most of the show from that night, and the band are red hot. Excellent performances, and with a very similar sound and style to the show from a week earlier in Chicago (found on This Is Live Clash). As mentioned, the songs have been resequenced, and so there are fadeouts every so often. This is also the gig where Paul smashed his bass - the famous Pennie Smith London Calling photo.

Kicking off with The Guns Of Brixton, the song is performed very well. Nice guitar work in the opener and throughout. The vocals are lower in the mix than the guitars and even the drums, and so sound distant and submerged.

"This song was written by your forefathers, and not a bad little number either."

Then there's a bit of a pause before English Civil War starts, as Johnny Green (famous Clash roadie) seems to be needed with the gaffa tape.

Not sure what's going on there, but it's amusing listening to Joe give a running commentary on it and it's pure coincidence with the name in the opening line of the song. It's also a good performance of English Civil War. Clash City Rockers - "This is our very own Clash City Rockers!" - is also great, and has some nice organ / keyboard additions, by Micky Gallagher I presume. Stay Free seems to fade in a bit brisquely and there's a nice announcer to Clampdown by Mick. There's the usual intro to Police & Thieves at the time, similar to on Buy Or Die, and after the song Joe recommends that the crowd should hear the original version of the song:

"You should hear Junior Murvin singing that tune!"

Then Joe does a very strange impersonation before the onslaught of Capital Radio begins. The fadeouts between some of the songs are professionally done. Safe European Home is a good performance. I'm So Bored With The U.S.A. is very energetic but the vocals are almost non-existant. The guitar just drowns out the sound, though it's still very rocking. A great Complete Control, and then the highlight of the show in my opinion:

"Here's a line in this next number - all that phoney Beatlemania has bitten the dust!"

London Calling is superb. My best moment of the CD. The album wasn't out at the time, yet the band had already honed this number to perfection. The guitar heavy opening working excellently. Sheer class.

"Pack your bags! ... We're all going to Hammermsith!"

Another great rendition, and some excellent bass playing from Paul, the bass itself also being very clear in this song. "The makers of Coca Cola would like to announce!" Joe says, and Koka Kola is excellent, but again the vocals are sadly lost in the guitars. Why are the guitars so dominant in the mix? Koka Kola leads very nicely into I Fought The Law, and then another nice fade out and fade in to Armagideon Time, which is great. It's instrumental only for well over a minute and again similiar to on This Is Live Clash. Obviously the preferred way on this tour. The quality on this track in particularly is excellent.

Following the slow funky Armagideon Time it's quickly into a blistering Career Opportunities. However, the vocals are again sadly lost. But the song is still has a big impact for the sheer power, then without a moments rest the grunge style opening to What's My Name - a barrage of guitar which dominates throughout.

White Riot opens with a drum solo, while the others take a short breather. Tommy Gun and Wrong 'Em Boyo are also performed well. Overall this show gives me the strange image of the band drowning in a sea of guitars and singing for all their worth to stay alive! Their voices are barely audible at times. That said it's still a good CD. The band are full of energy and every song is a good performance. Certainly one to acquire.

Rated: 8 / 10

Extra

Presumably Micky Gallagher accompanied The Clash on this tour. His work on keyboards is good, particularly on Clash City Rockers and Janie Jones.